The Shadow Strays is a 2024 Indonesian action crime thriller film written and directed by Timo Tjahjanto.
[1] The film stars Aurora Ribero as Codename 13, a 17-year-old assassin who is suspended after a botched mission in Japan.
During suspension, 13 has recurring nightmares of her mother's death and routinely contacts her handler who instructs her to consume her medication and wait.
The syndicate also includes Ariel, a drug lord running as vice governor of Jakarta alongside his father, Soemitro, an influential criminal kingpin.
13 learns that Monji had come to the Moonrose the previous night and was kidnapped by Prasetyo and Haga.
13 kills Haga, which enraged Soriah who shoots up the Moonrose and inadvertently draws the police's attention.
13 kills the Moonrose's security team and eventually escapes with Jeki but the two part ways after the latter's refusal to help in 13's mission to recover Monji.
Later that night, Prasetyo and his corrupt police squad stormed Jeki's grandmother's house but their attack was thwarted by 13.
The Masked Man reveals himself to be Master Burai, Umbra's revered mentor, who requests 13 to become his mentee.
[3] The Shadow Strays had its world premiere at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival on 10 September 2024, during the Midnight Madness section.
[5][6] In just six days after its release, The Shadow Strays charted in Netflix's Global Top 10 of non-English film and also ranked the Top 10 Films in 85 countries, including the United States, Canada, Brazil, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Indonesia.
Patrick Brzeski of The Hollywood Reporter praised The Shadow Strays and described it as John Wick but "make it Indonesian women with uzis and samurai swords — and more brutal".
[8] Johnny Loftus on New York Post's Decider commented that "Shadow Strays consists of extended bouts of firearm and fist and swordplay that result in so many satisfyingly gruesome kill shots" and acclaimed Ribero and Malasan's professional skill and personal bond that "establishes and eventually pierces the heart at the center of Shadow Strays" as well as recommended to watch the film.
[11] Chris Evangelista wrote for /Film and overall gave a balanced evaluation for the film as "exciting and exhausting".
He praised Timo's delivery of the action and the cinematography as "superb style" and "everything looks extra cool"; commented that "The Shadow Strays is a movie designed to be cool"; and acknowledged the violence's true artistry as he "particularly loved how filthy and bloody the characters get as they engage in scuffles"; though he pointed out that the violence aspect of the film is "so constant and unyielding" that it made himself "growing less enamored with the frequent bloody action and a little more weary" as the film progresses.
[12] On December 6, 2024, it was named the #1 Martial Arts Film of 2024 by the editors of Taekwondo Life Magazine[13]